Adjustable thrust bearing



Sept. 16 1924.

L. T. HUNTER ADJUSTABLE THRUST 'BEARING lFiled Feb. 2o. 1924 lll/llll/Patented Sept.. lr6, lQZd.

il" TATE;

LOUIS T. HUNTER, 0F GHAEPAQUA, NEW YO'RK.

ADJUSTABLE runner sensitive.

Application filed February 20, 1924. vSerial No. 693,981.

To all whom t may concern:

.Be it known that I, Louis T. HUNTER, a citizen of thel United States,residing at Chappaqua, in the county of l/Vestchester and State of NewYork, have invented certain new and usefullmprovements in Adjustable.Thrust Bearings, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to power transmitting devices and has particularreference to the hearings supporting power shafting that may besubjected to end thrust, such for'cxample as the central hanger bearingof the crank shaft of an internal combustion engine.

It is well known that the center hanger of the crank shaft is compelledto carry the maximum end thrust of the crank shaft resulting from theapplication or manipulation of the clutch, and consequently this bearingis required to be renewed very frequently. This operation is expensivebecause of the renewed parts required and also as to the time elementand labor resulting from the fact of inconvenient accessibility. Amongthe objects of this invention, therefore, is to provide a bearingconstruction and means or method of adjustment that will obviate much ofthe expense and loss of time incident to the usual practice.

More specifically, this invention involves the provision of a bearingcap specially formed for the co-operation therewith of a take-up memberthrough the use of which the same bearing may be used repeatedly or inchanged positions so as to compensate for a large portion of the wearresulting from end thrust.

Vith the foregoing and other objects in view the invention consists inthe arrangement and combination of parts hereinafter described andclaimed, and while the invention is not restricted to the exact detailsof construction disclosed or suggested herein, still for the purpose ofillustrating a practical embodiment thereof reference is had to j theaccompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate thesaine parts in the several views, and in which- Figure l is a diagramindicating the lo cation of the bearing with which I am mostparticularly concerned, although it is to be understood that the sameexpedient may be used on other bearings or in other relations.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged side elevation of the same bearing, parts being insection and indicating the relative position of the parts when thebearing is new. y

Fig. 3 is a view correspondingto Fig-2, but showing the changedpositions relatively of the parts after adjustment for wear. Y

Fig. 4f is a horizontal section through the center of the bearing withthe clamping bolts in section and with the take-up members shown in theposition of Fig. 2. v

Fig. 5 is a. detail perspective view of the spacing member.

L' v L Reieiring now more specifically to the drawings l show a bearing`comprising an upper portion or hanger-l0 fitted with a Babbitt metallining 11, a lower bearing cap 12 alsoliaving a lining 11, andy theseVbearing;- members are ordinarily clamped'together by means of bolts 13khaving removable nuts 1/lso that the bearing members are in perfectvertical alignment or with their ends in the same vertical plane andagainst which ends the collars C of the shaft S bearwhen the bearing is`new and unworin In this condition as shown in Fig. 2 the thrust of theshaft in either direction ordinarily is sustained byboth bearings.

After a certain amount of wear or service, however, due tothe end thrustof thev shaft resulting from manipulation and use of the clutch so muchwear takesplace between the lining and the shaft collars thatobjectionable or dangerous amount of lost motion of the shaft endwise ispermitted and this condition must be remedied. The usual practice is toreline the bearings or else put in entirely new bearings. Eitherexpedient involves the dismantling ofthe hanger 1Q and all partsassociated with it.

To obviate this objectionable loss of time 13 `lie in one end oftheelliptical holes 15.

To prevent endwise movement of the cap 12 having the elliptical holes atthis time, I employ for each hole a take-up member in the nature of acrescent shaped filler meinber i6 made of metal such steel and having anoutside diameter corresponding tothe diameter of the bolt. The insidediameter also corresponds to the diameter of the bolt so that thetaire-up member will fit directly against that side of the bolt adjacentto the space that is filled by the talee-up member. Thus as shown inFigs. 2 and d the bearing` when new and first assembled is essentiallythe same in operation as the ordinary bearing.

Y After such amount of wear on the ends of the bearing as willnecessitate renewal or correction for the lost motion resulting7 all Ihave to do to make the correction to remove the nuts lll and so allowthe take-up members to drop down into the hand and then simply slide thecap l2 transversely of the bolts till the bolts are received in theopposite ends of the holes l5 and then slip the take-upv members intoplace on the opposite side of the bolts as shown in 3 and then replacethe nuts. rlhe condition then is that the thrust in one direction willbe taken by one bearing` member and in the other direction by the otherbearing member, but there will be ne lost motion. So the bearing willpossess about twice the wearing` quality of an ordinary bearingY and bythis time renewal thereof may be demanded anyway because of otherwearing conditions.

I claim:

l. ln a thrust bearing, the combination of a relatively hired bearing)-me lber7 a cap cooperating With said member, clampingl lessees meansincluding a bolt securing initially said cap and member in definitealignment transversely of the axis of the bearing, said cap being soformed as to provide endwise bodily adjustment of the cap as a unit withrespect to the bearing member and bolt, and take-Up means including` afiller member extendin in substantially parallel relation to said beitand having direct bearing relation beti'veen said bolt and said bearingfor Varying the lateral adjustment of the bolt to the bearing se as tohold said bolt as adjusted, said bolt co-operating` with said cap tohold same from endwise movement when in AA:red adjustment.

in mechanism of the nature set forth, e combination with a shaft havingthrust liars, of bearing means for the shaft coma hanger member' againstwhich both s are adapted to bear initially, a can pere-ating with thehanger member anc line-wise fitted initially between the collars inalignment with the hanger member7 clamping means between the hangermember including a bolt fixed in one of the s while the other member hasan el- LOUS T. HUNTER.v

